Rotary engine.



A. WESTER.

ROTARY ENGINE. APPLIOATION FILED JAN. 16, 1909. mmrzwzn JAN. 10, 1910.

Patented Nov. 21,1911.

i m M g UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AXEL WESTER, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, ASSIGNOR'OFONE-HALF TO A. L. LOFG-REN, F MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA.

ROTARY ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 21, 1911.

Application filed January 16, 1909, Serial No. 472,616.: Renewed January 10, 1910. Serial No. 537,347.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AXEL WESTER, a citizen of the Kingdom of Sweden, residing at Minneapolis, Hennepin county, Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotary Engines, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a rotary engine, composed of but few parts and capable of producing a desired power with economy in the use of steam.

A further object is to provide a rotary engine having a revolving piston with means for admitting the pressure so that the load will be evenly balanced on the axis of the piston.

A further object is to provide means whereby steam will be admitted from the revolving piston to the steam chamber during the revolution of the piston, the steam being supplied from the piston at substantially boiler pressure.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following detailed description.

The invention consists generally of a cylinder, a crank shaft rigidly secured therein, a revolving piston journaled on said shaft and slides pivoted on said shaft and operated by said piston within steam chambers in said cylinder.

Further, the invention consists in various constructions and combinations, all as hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the claims. 7

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a longitudinal, sectional view of a rotary engine embodying my invention, taken on the section line Y'Y of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line XX of Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is a side view, partially in section, of an engine embodying my invention, Fig. A is an end view, Fig. 5 is a detail View, partially'in section, of the engine piston.

In the drawing, 2 represents the engine cylinder having a central steam chamber 3 formed therein and end chambers 1, one on each side of the chamber 3.

5 is a crank shaft keyed at 6 in the ends of the cylinder. This crank shaft has a central off-set 8 and off-sets 9 formed on' each side thereof opposite the middle and end steam chambers respectively. A hollow piston 10 is journaled at 11 on one end of the crank shaft and has a bearing 12 at its opposite end in the cylinder head. This piston is provided with steam intake ports 13 through the head of the cylinder, communicating with the hollow interior of the piston. This piston is provided with packing rings 14, which bear on the inner walls of the cylinder and between these packing rings in the walls of the steam chambers 3 and 1. I provide strips of packing l5 and 16, with which the piston contacts during its revolution. The steam chambers, as shown in 'Fig. 1, are eccentrically arranged with respect to the piston, and the off-set portions of the crank shaft forming the center of these chambers. Upon the olf-set portions of the crank-shaft, I arrange slides 17 and 18 with their ends projecting through slots 19 and 20 in the walls of the hollow piston. The inner ends of the slides are provided with weights 21, which partially counterbalance the slides and a movable bearing is provided for each slide on the crank shaft, which will allow them to move lengthwise and seat themselves against the walls of the cylinder, being held thereby when the piston is in motion by centrifugal force and by the tension of the springs 21. The lengthwise movement of the slides on the crank shaft also compensates for the wear of the ends of the slides on the walls of the cylinder.

In the operation of the engine, the slides will contact with the cylinder walls with sufficient pressure to prevent the passage of steam between the slide and the wall, but will not bear hard enough to retard the movement of the piston. The ends of the slides will preferably be rounded to conform to the curved surface of the cylinder. The slides are provided with packing strips 21", which are yieldingly held against the walls of the steam chambers by springs 21".

As indicated in Fig. 1, I provide a large central slide and a smaller one on each side thereof, the smaller slides combined having an area equal to that of the middle slide and operated on the opposite side of thepiston. When therefore, the middle slide is projected, the outer slides will be projected also, but on the opposite side of the cylinder and consequently the piston will be balanced, the steam pressure being applied on both sides simultaneously. I may pro vide six of the slides divided preferably into two sets, three in each set, so that proper balance for the piston will be obtained and dead centers will be prevented, there being a constant application of power to the piston. The piston is provided with a large interior chamber, as shown, which forms a reservoir for the steam and the steam being admitted and flowing around on both sides of the crank shaft, a perfect balance of the piston will result. The steam, entering the supply pipe, will fill the chamber of the piston and pass therefrom to the steam chambers in the rear of the slides as the piston revolves, or in other words-the supply of steam will revolve with the piston and passing therefrom to the steam chambers, will exert a more even application of power to the slides than would be the case if the steam were admitted through the stationary cylinder and was alternately cut off and admitted as the piston revolves. I have found that this manner of admitting the steam to the revolving piston and allowing it to enter the steam chambers while the piston revolves, to be an important feature of my invention, as it enables me to dispense with all out offs and provide a continuous pressure in the revolving piston, making its interior perform the function of a steam chest with no appreciable loss in pressure between the chest and the point where the steam contacts with the slides.

The slots 19 and 20 are of sutficient width to allow the steam, entering the hollow piston through the passage 18, to flow out into the steam chambers in the rear of the slides and the slides being held out against the walls of the steam chambers by centrifugal force and the tension of the springs 21, chambers will be formed in the rear of each slide and the live steam rushing therein from the hollow piston, will exert its pressure on the slides and revolve the piston. As the piston revolves, the slides will gradually withdraw within the piston until their outer ends are flush substantially with the surface of the piston and at this point, the slides will be passing the dead center, which, in this case, is at the top of the cylinder. WVhen this point has been passed, the surface of the piston will recede from the walls of the cylinder and the slides will remain in contact with the walls of the steam chambers and follow the curvature of said walls around the cylinder until the point where the piston contacts with said walls is again reached. There is therefore really no restriction of the slides with respect to the cylinder walls, as their outer ends remain in contact with these walls during the complete revolution of the piston. The exhaust steam accumulating in front of the slides will pass through the slides 22 into the passages 22 provided in the piston, and from thence be directed to an exhaust port 23 in the ends of the cylinder.

In the revolution of the piston, as shown in Fig. 2, a point will be reached where the slides will be withdrawn within the piston and the passage leading from the piston to the steam chambers closed. As the revolu tion of the piston continues however, the steam passage will be exposed and as the chamber formed in the rear of each slide increases in area, the steam will rush in from the hollow piston and fill the chamber and exert its pressure on the face of the slide. Each chamber will increase in area from the time its port is opened up and the initial projection of the slide takes place, until the slide is withdrawn within the piston and the steam passage is closed. By arranging the exhaust passage in the revolving piston instead of in the wall of the cylinder, as usual in engines of this type, I am able to avoid all danger of back pressure on the slides. The live steam will be admitted on one side of the slides and the space on the other side of each slide in the steam chamber will be open at all times to the exhaust, as indicated in Fig. 2. The slides will normally be in contact with the inner wall of the cylinder, sliding thereon as the piston revolves. As each slide passes the point 15 in the wall of the cylinder, it will be pushed in flush with the surface of the piston and as soon as it leaves this point, steam will be admitted from the piston in the rear of the slide while the space in front being open to the exhaust will be rapidly cleared and there will be no tendency whatever to form a back pressure, a defect which has often been fatal to engines of this type. Furthermore,Ihave found that by providing a piston of this type having passages therein for the live and. the exhaust steam, that I am able to more perfectly balance the piston and provide for its even, regular revolution and with a minimum of wear in the bearings. A pulley 2k is formed on one end of the piston and adapted to receive a belt for the transmission of power.

The engine may be made of any suitable size and the number of the slides may be varied and their area increased or decreased, according to the desired capacity of the engine. In addition to the use of this apparatus as a rotary engine, I have found that it may be utilized as a pump or as an air compressor.

I claim as my invention:

1. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder having annular pressure fluid chambers formed therein and oppositely arranged, a stationary crank shaft journaled in said cylinder, a hollow revolving piston journaled in said cylinder and having a central chamber forming a chest, through which said shaft extends, said chest having a supply port at one end communicating continuously therewith, and a series of slots in its side walls leading to said cylinder chambers, a series of slides pivoted on said crank shaft and arranged to project through the a centered with respect to said cylinder chambers whereby said slides will follow the walls of said cylinder chambers as said piston revolves, and said chest having passages in the rear of said slides leading to said cylinder chambers and also having exhaust ports communicating with said chambers in advance of said slides, and said piston having longitudinal passages therein separated from said chest and communicating with said exhaust ports and discharging at the opposite end of said piston from its fluid supply port, substantially as described.

2. A rotary engine, comprising a cylinder having an annular pressure fluid chamber at each end, and an intermediate annular chamber oppositely arranged with respect to said end chambers, a stationary crank shaft mounted in said cylinder, a hollow revolving piston journaled in said cylinder and having a single chamber extending from end to end thereof and forming a chest, said chest having an intake port at one end communicating with a supply passage provided in the end of said cylinder, and said chest having a series of slots in its walls communicating respectively with said cylinder chambers, slides pivoted on said crank shaft and arranged to project through said slots into said chambers respectively, said slides being held in sliding engagement with the outer walls of said cylinder chambers as said piston revolves, and said piston being eccentrically arranged with respect to said chambers, and the pivots of said slides being centered with respect to said chambers, whereby said slides will be projected and withdrawn as said piston revolves, and said chest having ports in its walls in the rear of said slides leading to said chambers, and also having exhaust ports in advance of said slides, and said piston having longitudinal passages therein separated from said chest and upon opposite sides thereof, one of said passages communicating with the exhaust ports of said end chambers, and the other passage communicating with the exhaust port leading from said middle or intermediate chamber, and said passages exhausting at the other end of said piston from said inlet port, substantially as described and for the purpose specified.

3. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder having annular pressure-fluid chambers formed therein, there being end chambers, and an intermediate or middle one oppositely arranged in the walls of said cylinder, a hollow revolving piston j ournaled in said cylinder and provided with an interiorly arranged chamber forming a chest having a supply port at one end, the walls of said chest having slots leading to the said chambers, slides mounted in said piston and projecting through said slots and normally contacting with the walls of said chambers, there being end slides and an oppositely arranged middle slide, which has an area exposed to the pressure fluid that is equal substantially to the aggregate corresponding area of said end slides, said piston being eccentrically arranged with respect to said cylinder chamber, and said chest having ports in the rear of said slides leading to said chambers and also provided with exhaust ports communicating with said chambers in advance of said slides, said exhaust ports being normally open to said chambers whereby formation of back pressure on the slides is prevented, and said piston having exhaust passages communicating with said exhaust ports and separated from said chest.

4. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder having annular pressure-fluid chambers oppositely arranged therein, a hollow revolving piston journaled in said cylinder, the interior of said piston being open from end to end and forming a central pressure-fluid chest having a pressure-fluid inlet port at one end, the walls of said chest having slots therein leading to said cylinder chambers, a stationary crank shaft extending centrally through said chest, slides pivoted on said crank shaft and projecting through the slots in the walls of said chest into said chambers, said piston being eccentrically arranged with respect to said chambers, and the pivots of said slides being centered with respect to said chambers, and the ends of said slides normally contacting with the outer walls of piston having passages communicating with said exhaust ports and separated from said chest.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 7th day of January 1907.

AXEL WESTER. Witnesses:

RICHARD PAUL, J. A. BYINGTON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. G. 

